Receiving a diagnosis of cancer can be frightening and life-changing.  But what happens when the correct diagnosis is missed or delayed?  As many as 12% of the nearly 1.5 million cancer cases each year are missed by doctors.  That’s an estimated 180,000 people annually.  It’s no wonder there are a steady number of cancer misdiagnosis lawsuits filed each year.

Sometimes the disease is diagnosed as another condition altogether, other times it is missed entirely.  There are even cases in which a doctor incorrectly diagnoses a patient with cancer when they are not actually suffering from the disease.  In any of these situations, the impact can be nothing short of catastrophic.

Cancer misdiagnosis can occur in any number of ways, including:

• The doctor failed to recognize the signs and symptoms of the disease
• The doctor failed to refer the patient to the appropriate specialist
• The doctor or specialist failed to order the proper tests
• The doctor did not properly biopsy the area in question
• The doctor or specialist failed to correctly interpret test results

The outcome of a cancer misdiagnosis can be anywhere from dangerous to life-threatening.  If a patient’s cancer is misdiagnosed as something different, or missed altogether, the delay in required treatment can mean further progression of the disease and even a shortening of the patient’s lifespan.  In cases where a patient is wrongly diagnosed with having cancer, they may be subjected to dangerous and unnecessary treatments or surgery, which can cause them further illness and harm.

People who have been a victim of cancer misdiagnosis, whatever the reason, may have the right to file a medical malpractice lawsuit against the doctor or specialist responsible for the error.  Medical attorneys who represent these victims typically seek monetary damages for things such as medical expenses, lost wages, permanent disability or disfigurement, and pain and suffering.

The family of Melissa Hendricks, a Texas woman who died from cancer that went undiagnosed for over a year, has been awarded $3.5 million in her wrongful death lawsuit.  It is reportedly one of the largest medical malpractice verdicts in Denton County history.

The suit alleged that in 2002, Hendricks found a small lump on the top of her head prompting her to visit the Highland Family Medical Center where she was seen by Dr. Stephen Glaser.  Hendricks communicated to Glaser her concerns about cancer, which had taken her mother’s life years earlier.  Glaser dismissed her concerns, however, and diagnosed the lump as a nonmalignant lesion known as a sebaceous cyst.

The cyst was removed the following week, however no subsequent testing or biopsies were performed on the sample to confirm or refute the diagnosis and it was discarded.

A year later, Hendricks noticed another lump where the original had been and at that point sought treatment with a different doctor.  It was only then that the correct diagnosis of sarcoma, a dangerous form of cancer, was reached.  Unfortunately, however, with no treatment for over a year, the disease had progressed rapidly.  Hendricks fought valiantly but lost her battle in December 2004, less than a year after receiving the correct diagnosis.

The jury awarded Hendricks’ family the hefty settlement which will likely be reduced due to damage caps in Texas.  It is important to also note that they attributed 10% of the responsibility to Hendricks herself for not being more aggressive about getting a proper diagnosis given her family history of cancer.

Early detection of cancer is critical because left undiagnosed, the disease can continue to spread and worsen.  Treatment options may also be limited in late diagnosis, severely limiting the success rate of the patient in beating the disease and potentially shortening their life.  If you have received a diagnosis that you are unsure about, it is important that you take the initiative and get a second opinion.  It could mean the difference between life and death.

Should you find yourself already a victim of cancer that went undiagnosed or was misdiagnosed as something else causing a delay in treatment, you may have legal rights.  Discuss your situation with a medical lawyer to find out more.

A Tennessee jury has found in favor of plaintiff Courtney Hill in her failure to diagnose lawsuit against Dr. Claudia Moise and OB/GYN Specialists P.C. of Memphis.  She was awarded nearly $24 million for her medical bills, pain and suffering after her breast cancer was misdiagnosed.

According to the lawsuit, Dr. Moise ignored Hill’s multiple complaints of an unusual lump in one of her breasts.  The complaints began back in 2003, when Moise advised Hill not to be concerned and that she would revisit the issue during her next check-up.  During that subsequent check-up, Moise still did not order a mammogram, but instead suggested to Hill that the lump was simply a cyst or a fatty deposit.

She couldn’t have been more wrong.  Hill had cancer, and it wasn’t until she was pregnant and the lump got worse that she was finally given a mammogram and an ultrasound that revealed the disease.  By that point, it had spread to her liver.

Hill then had to undergo chemotherapy, radiation, a lumpectomy, and a hysterectomy to treat her cancer.  Because of these intensive medical treatments, she was too weak to appear in court so her testimony had to be presented via video.

The medical malpractice trial only lasted two weeks before the jury reached a decision.  They awarded $11.85 million to Mrs. Hill and an additional $11.74 million to her husband, Robert, who also sued for damages.  The verdict is said to be one of the largest malpractice awards in Tennessee history.

The Maryland court of appeals is giving the family of Pearline Brown Rice, who died of cancer after a tumor was misdiagnosed as arthritis, a third chance to fight their wrongful death suit.  The original case ended in favor of the family, awarding them over $11 million, but was overturned, and the first appeal denied.  A judge recently granted them another chance to pursue their claim.

In March 2001, Rice went to the University of Maryland Medical Center complaining of knee pain.  She was diagnosed as having osteoarthritis.  What she really had was a ruptured cancerous cyst, which went undiagnosed for several months.

By the time the disease was discovered, Rice had already lost precious time.  She underwent surgery, amputation, radiation and chemotherapy, but it was too late.  She died in March 2003.

In April 2006, a jury found in favor of Rice’s children, awarding them $11,003,000 in damages, but just a few months later the Medical Center was granted a new trial after a judge concluded that the verdict ran counter to the weight of evidence.

The second time around, the family’s suit was dismissed based on a new requirement that an expert’s opinion be filed along with a lawsuit and an issue involving the statute of limitations.  The Court of Special Appeals found that decision to be incorrect, and has again breathed new life into the wrongful death suit.

A verdict in favor of the defendant or a dismissal of your case doesn’t necessarily mean it’s over.  A good medical attorney will know if you have a chance to appeal your case and how to go about doing so in a timely manner.  If you have found yourself in this type of situation, speak to a medical lawyer about it today.

A jury in Virginia has awarded what is believed to be the state’s largest medical malpractice recovery, $7.5 million, to the surviving family of Eleanor Browder who died as a result of a misdiagnosis of breast cancer in the form of a delayed diagnosis.
In March 2003 Browder went to see Dr. Donna Gamache after she found a notable lump in her right breast.  Nurse Practitioner Mary Nichols ordered a mammogram which came back with negative results.
The results of the mammogram were delivered to Dr. Gamache, at which point she examined them and wrote “Need chart” at the top.  Neither the nurse nor the doctor ever retrieved said chart, nor were any further tests ordered as a follow up to the mammogram to determine exactly what was causing Mrs. Browder’s lump.

By the time Browder returned to Dr. Gamache in October, the lump in her right breast had grown to the size of a lemon.  It was then that an ultrasound and a biopsy were ordered and the cancer was finally diagnosed.  But by then it was too late.  The cancer was at a stage IV, and incurable.  Sadly, Mrs. Browder passed away last April, before her complaint made it to trial.  Her husband and two adult children continued the case following her death.

The medical attorney for the Browder family argued that had the cancer been properly diagnosed seven months earlier, when the original mammogram was performed, Browder’s survival rate would have been greatly increased.

The jury allocated $212,000 of the award to medical expenses, $785,000 for economic loss and $6.5 million to Mrs. Browder’s widower, Paul, for “solace”.  Unfortunately, the damages will be reduced to $1.65 million, the state-mandated medical malpractice cap.

A delayed diagnosis of cancer can mean the difference between a full recovery and certain death.  If you or a loved one has suffered further losses due to a missed or delayed cancer diagnosis, or you have lost a family member as a result of this type of medical negligence, please don’t hesitate to discuss your situation with an experienced medical lawyer.

Source:   Fredericksburg.com

Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center scientists will be conducting a trial to test a new cancer treatment which has promise of eradicating cancer in humans. The treatment involves getting specific white cells from select donors and infusing the white cells into patients who have advanced forms of cancer.

This new trial, approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is based on the discovery, about five years ago, of a cancer-resistant mouse. Later findings showed that white blood cells from that mouse and its offspring cured advanced cancers in ordinary lab mice. Since then, they have discovered that the white blood cells of some humans carry the same cancer-killing capability.

Zheng Cui, Ph.D., lead researcher and associate professor of pathology, announced the study June 28th at the Understanding Aging conference in Los Angeles.

“In mice, we’ve been able to eradicate even highly aggressive forms of malignancy with extremely large tumors,” Cui said. “Hopefully, we will see the same results in humans. Our laboratory studies indicate that this cancer-fighting ability is even stronger in healthy humans.”

The team has tested, in the laboratory, cancer-fighting cells against cervical, prostrate and breast cancer cells with good results. The anti-tumor response involves granulocytes, the most abundant type of white blood cell in humans. They can be donated without the donor losing other components of the blood. The team has indicated that up to three donors may be needed to collect enough blood product for one study recipient.

“The difference between our study and the traditional white cell therapy is that we’re selecting the healthy donors based on the cancer-killing ability of their white blood cells,” said Cui. The scientists are calling the therapy Leukocyte InFusion Therapy (LIFT).

The goal of the phase II study is to determine whether patients can tolerate a sufficient amount of transfused granulocytes for the treatment. Participants will be monitored on a regular basis, and after three months scientists will evaluate whether the treatment results in clear clinical benefits for the patients. If this phase of the study is successful, scientists will expand the study to determine if the treatment is best suited to certain types of cancer.